A Man and his cat vol 1 by Umi Sakurai

In a pet store in Japan, many of the young, adorable kittens are quickly adopted, leaving behind the lovable, fluffy, slightly older cat, whose sad eyes beg for a new owner to come adopt him. Kanda, a recent widower, adopts the big guy and provides a loving home for him. Kanda names him Fukumaru, a combination of the words for "luck" and "happiness" in Japanese. Fukumaru is so grateful that he has been adopted that he tries to go into every room with Kanda, which is normally fine until Fukumaru tries to go in the shower with him. He realizes the hard way that there are some places they cannot be together.

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This lovely, slice-of-life Iyashikei manga accomplishes exactly what it’s supposed to: as long as the reader likes cats, they are sure to put this book down and feel better. These types of books are great for after stressful days.  Fukumaru is so adorable that you can’t help but want him to be happy and loved.  Some of there adventures are very much what real cat owners experience - like the cat trying to follow you everywhere, or buying fun toys and the cat loves the box more. There are some serious notes, though, as Kanda's wife appears at the beginning of the story, so adopting Fukumaru is probably part of Kanda's grieving process. Even with tackling these tougher topics, readers are still sure to fall in love with Fukumaru and feel better after finishing this volume.

Square Enix rates this for All Ages, but I would caution against some of the lower elementary grades where students wouldn't have experience with death or family estrangement (which happens later in the series).

Sara's Rating: 9/10
Suitability Level: Grades 4-12

Publisher: Square Enix
Publication Date: February 11, 2020
ISBN: 9781646090266 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 9/10, Suitability: Elementary School, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Slice Of Life, Iyashikei, Square Enix